CLEVELAND — There is no playoff spot yet for the Cleveland Browns. It did not happen on this day, as they lose to the New York Jets 23-16.
It's the second win in a row for the Jets, but also just their second win of the season. The Browns, of course, came into the game limping on their active roster, wiped out because of COVID-19 protocols that kept all of their front-line wide receivers out. Two linebackers were also missing and their left tackle was ill.
The Browns struggled all day long, and it led to a day where they just couldn't move the football. You felt the Browns would rely on their running game, but there was no running game to speak of (18 carries, 45 yards).
Cleveland jumped ahead 3-0 early on a 44-yard field goal by Cody Parkey, but then the Jets got rolling. With nothing to lose at all, New York got a touchdown on a trick play that saw wide receiver Jamison Crowder hit a wide-open Braxton Berrios from 43 yards away. Then, the problems really started.
Baker Mayfield could not stand in the pocket. The offensive line was leaking, and he was fumbling: Three fumbles on the day, all of them costly, with the first setting up a Jets touchdown. New York would later extend its lead to 20-3 early in the third quarter.
But the Browns came firing back, and Mayfield started to look more comfortable, throwing good passes to receivers he had never played with before. Suddenly, the lead looked to be down to three, until Cody Parkey had a big miss of an extra point that kept the margin at four.
Quick side note: Even if the Browns get into the playoffs next Sunday, you have to worry about the mental state of their kicker, who's been missing in these important games. That's a problem if you get to the playoffs at all, and it's a big problem next weekend if you need a kick to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Down by four, the Browns had the ball a couple of more times, but Mayfield fumbled again on a strip-sack, and it led to a Jets field goal to extend the lead to seven. Later, needing a touchdown but driving deep in Jets territory with plenty of time left, Mayfield tried a quarterback sneak on 4th-and-inches. He had been successful twice before this, but fumbled yet again, and although Kareem Hunt recovered he could not advance the football. Jets hold, game over.
It's desperation time now for the Browns, but they can still get into the playoffs by merely beating the Steelers next week. The first key? They have to get their players back. They need their wide receivers, and perhaps most importantly, they need a better offensive line.
If Jedrick Wills and Wyatt Teller can come back, then Cleveland is up to snuff, the way they've been throughout most of this season. But if they can't return, well, let's just say Mayfield didn't look comfortable today.
It seemed as though it was going to be a cruise into the playoffs, but nothing is easy for the Browns. Who would've ever though the roster wipeout on Saturday would've happen before a game against a team that entered just 1-13 on the season? But that's what happened.
So, it's a lot tougher now. They have to beat the Steelers (or cross their fingers for a Jaguars upset over the Colts), who have already wrapped up the AFC North. You wonder if they will play their starters next week here in Cleveland. Who knows?
Regardless, keep your eye on the Browns' active roster as the week goes along. Will those wide receivers, linebackers, and offensive linemen get back and be ready to play against the Steelers? Hopefully they do, because it will be Cleveland's biggest must-win situation since the team returned to the NFL 21 years ago.
A disappointing Sunday, no doubt about it. For now, we wait another week to see if the Browns can finally end the drought and make it into the playoffs. It will most likely take a win over the Steelers to do it. They control their own destiny.